The Avengers: Infinity War trailer is (finally) here, and within the reel of ominous teaser footage were juicy new insights about the individual heroes of the Avengers, and their connections to this larger storyline about Thanos' quest for the Infinity Gauntlet.

One prominent character in this first Infinity War trailer was none other than T'Challa / Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman), who is seen trying to defend his homeland of Wakanda from an attack by Thanos and Black Order forces. In fact, "The Battle of Wakanda" looks to be a major set piece of Infinity War, but it begs the question: why?

Well, Marvel Cinematic Universe fans who have been connecting the dots all throughout the lead-up to Infinity War can probably surmise: this Avengers: Infinity War trailer may finally confirm the long-standing theory about Black Panther and Wakanda's connection to one of the Infinity Stones!

The trailer for Black Panther have shown us the character's connection to a spiritual realm where he communes with the "Panther Gods" and draws the power the Black Panther. Fans quickly theorized that the Wakandans drew their spiritual strength from the same meteor that crashed into the country long ago, bringing the mythic metal Vibranium with it (aka the material used to make Captain America's shield). The big reveal that we expect to get in the Black Panther solo movie, is that the Wakandan meteor actually houses The Soul Stone, the final Infinity Stone to be found in the MCU.

BATTLE FOR THE SOUL

With the reveal that The Soul Stone is the heart of Wakanda's technology, prosperity, and spiritual power, it makes sense that the reclusive African nation will become a target for Thanos' attack.

If Avengers: Infinity War plays like this first trailer seems to suggest, Thanos will be collecting stone after stone from those currently hiding or protecting them - leaving some broken heroes in his wake. The trailer confirms that the Mad Titan will successfully acquire The Mind, Power, and Space stones (aka Vision's gem, The Orb, and Tesseract). If The Soul Stone is one of the final two or three Infinity Stones on Thanos' list, it would explain why he goes all-out with an assault on Wakanda, using The Black Order and their nightmarish scouts, The Outriders.

OTHER THINGS POSSIBLE

Of course, there could be no connection between Wakanda and the Soul Stone. Black Panther's homeland could just be a stronghold or fall back point, which The Avengers use to guard whatever Infinity Stone they have in their possession at the time (like the Time Stone). It would be much more random to stage a battle of that size in Wakanda for such arbitrary reasons - but it's possible.

Do you agree that The Soul Stone is in Wakanda? Let me know your opinion (or your own theories) @KofiOutlaw!

Avengers: Infinity War opens in theaters on May 4, 2018. Thor: Ragnarok is now playing in theaters. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include; Black Panther on February 16, 2018, Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6, 2018, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.